Hurt, Betrayed and Misunderstood
by Di Blythe
Summary: The Hunters of Artemis-you can forgive but not ever forget. One-shot dedicated to MyVeryWildImagination, HAPPY BIRTHDAY!


**_Hurt, Betrayed and Misunderstood_**

You might see some especially furiously-driven, maiden-devoted Huntresses and think of them as unreasonable. But beneath every hard exterior is a broken soul. Hurt, betrayed and misunderstood.

They're hurt. They're betrayed. They're misunderstood.

A male of any sort, if encountered by them, would immediately steer clear. (Or conclude that they were vicious and scary.) See their grim face, glaring with utter resent and disgust. Then at a point where you no longer satisfy their glowering mood, get snubbed incorrigibly.

_What _is_ their problem? Can't they cut off some slack once in a while?_

They either can't or won't, and it's probably the latter. Or both-depends how you look at it. You might see some especially furiously-driven, maiden-devoted Huntresses and think of them as unreasonable. _Maybe you're unreasonable_. Maybe they should think for a moment. _Maybe you should stop and think as well._

A lot of their stories have something in common:

_Pain_.

That was a word that especially the Lieutenant Hunter of Artemis, Thalia Grace, was familiar with. Painful and Paining-present tense. Pained-past tense. She had felt those.

Painless. What was it to be painless? She would've liked to have known, it would've saved her from suffering so much. And unfortunately, though immortality does in some way save you physically, it cannot mentally. And being immortal means living forever.

_Remembering, being hurtful, suffering: **forever**_

Sure it sounds cool at first, but when you think about it the Hunters don't _just_ join. Vowing upon Artemis isn't something taken lightly. They all have reasons.

_The faces hidden behind masks that they hope will never be unmasked_

Their features, fearlessly beautiful. Their eyes flashing with pride, tightly pursed lips, fingers pulling back the arrow. See it flying to a particularly monstrous creature. Monsters. 'Men are thought to be monsters.' One whispers.

_You're lucky they haven't shot _you_ yet _

Brave eyes. Fearless eyes. Bold, courageous eyes. Have you ever looked delved closer and actually studied them for long enough? If you quickly glance once you'll miss it. 'Brave. Fearless. Bold. Courageous. Proud.' And then slowly you see it: _Sad. Hurtful. Broken.__ Betrayed._

_The harder the exterior, the more broken the soul._

Fleeting looks can be very deceiving.

_Life can be very deceiving._

The Hunters of Artemis. They all want something. Companionship. A home. Some want lesser than others. Some want more. _Dignity. _

The pained always want to run away. But can you run away from problems?

_No. You can't._

Some of them might think their life has been cursed.

_Might've been._

Some want to shut out the world.

_They should._

Some just want to be free of their burden.

_We'd love to see you try!_

Forever young. Forever alive. Forever and ever and ever…

_And ever and ever_

Alone.

They may feel that, but are they really?

Never underestimate the strength of anyone. Never underestimate the _broken_. Never underestimate the _betrayed_ ones. Because though they can't forget or run away, _they learn._

And it may be harder to trust, it may start getting harder to believe in anything, anymore-but at least they've all got something in common. They stick together, they know their place. And because of that, they can let go and shove those hurtful and cruel voices/memories/people out of their mind. Immortality can be a blessing and a curse-but they can use it to their advantage: to grow _stronger_, to try and live _better_ once again.

They won't forget-nobody forgets. But '_The most damaged people smile the brightest'_ (even if they might not smile directly at you). They aren't unreasonable or mean or just plain nasty, they're misunderstood. Don't jump to conclusions-the Hunters might, but give them a bit of slack. They deserve it-after all they've been through.

The Hunters of Artemis. Hurt, betrayed, misunderstood but tough, brave and beautiful.

* * *

**Hm, never intended to write all this but now that I have...oh well. I got this idea when I overheard a person saying stuff about the Hunters and I know it was there opinion but I guess this is my way of expressing my own :) This is dedicated to a very good friend of mine, MyVeryWildImagination, this is my birthday gift to you! HAPPY BIRTHDAY :D I know you like this type of stuff so there you go!**

**R&R please :)**


End file.
